Molecular Diagnostics in Breast Cancer

Abstract

Diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, the most prevalent cancer among women, has come a long way, transitioning from clinical and pathological approaches into the new omics era. With available standard and traditional breast cancer screening and diagnostic methods are associated with own set of limitations, the need to develop new biomarkers or molecular diagnostics becomes more pertinent. Currently available biomarkers and diagnostics tools have enabled breast cancer diagnosis undergo a paradigm shift. These have been successful not only because of their prognostic and predictive value but also because it has enabled simplified and early breast cancer detection, along with accurate and tailored treatment. The present chapter focuses on how current molecular tools and technologies have revolutionized existing traditional screening and diagnosis methods for breast cancer. Additionally, the growing significance of using newer ‘omics’ approaches, such as proteomics in biomarker discovery for breast cancer holds tremendous promise and has also been discussed.